What If?
by Mom2abntb
Summary: One Shot Story. Rated T for mild violence and mild language. References the final scene of Wannabe in the Weeds. Major character death!


A/N: Thanks Redrider6612 & Sarah for proofing this! I got the inspiration from NSync's "I Thought She Knew".

**What If?**

Brennan sang the first verse of "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun". Booth sat in the front, dancing goofily in time to the music. Everyone was happy to see Dr. Temperance Brennan finally letting her hair down and having fun.

Pam walked into the Checkerbox and saw him, in the front, dancing around in his chair. Then her eyes fell on the object of his affection. _Her_. The waif-thin doctor. _What was her specialty? Archaeology? Astrology?_ Pam thought to herself. It didn't really matter. She was focused on Seeley, the man she loved, giddily watching that _woman_. Pam's blood started to boil; her eyes were green with jealousy.

"Look at me…not her," she whispered. Crushing sadness filled Pam's heart as it suddenly became crystal clear to her. Seeley's attention and love didn't lie with her, it lay with Dr. Brennan. Pain gave way to anger once again. Dr. Brennan was not going to ruin this for her. Pam reached into her purse and pulled out the revolver.

"Seeley," she said, but he didn't hear her. His attention was still on Dr. Brennan.

"SEELEY," she yelled. He turned around and panic filled his eyes when he saw the gun.

"I'm doing this for us," Pam said as she raised the gun. Booth jumped up to put himself in the way of the bullet, but he didn't count on Bones continuing to jump around, dancing. The gun fired, the bullet hitting her in the chest. The microphone dropped with a thud as Brennan fell into Booth's arms. Booth caught her and lowered her to the floor. Glancing around, he saw Pam advancing on them, gun still raised. Cradling his partner, he managed to free his weapon from its holster and fire. Pam went down quickly, a clean shot to the head. Dropping the Glock, he held Bones to his chest, felt the warmth as the blood…her blood…soaked through his shirt.

"Booth," Brennan whispered, swallowing hard. She could taste the bitterness of the blood as it rose in her throat. Booth put two fingers to her mouth, silencing her.

"Shhh, don't talk," he said, voice straining with emotion. Her eyes were wide with pain and fear. Booth found it hard to speak over the lump in his throat. Hodgins knelt down and pressed his hands over the wound, trying to stop the blood. Brennan's breathing became raspy and her eyes fluttered.

"Bones; come on Bones. Stay with me," Booth pleaded, tears burning in his eyes. The pain in his heart was becoming unbearable as he watched his beloved slip away.

"Booth…I…" Brennan whispered again, trying to keep her eyes focused on him. Blackness edged her vision; the pain in her chest was excruciating. She gasped, struggling to breathe. In her final moments, she willed away the darkness of death to get one last glimpse of Booth, her partner, her friend. His face was taut with pain and sadness. As her tears fell, she raised her hand and pressed it against Booth's chest, his heart. He choked back a sob as he realized what she was saying without words. Then her eyes closed slowly and her hand fell away.

"No, Bones…please…" Booth yelled, willing Brennan to open her eyes once more, to fight with him. Tears streamed down Hodgins' face as he checked her pulse. He glanced up at Booth and shook his head, signaling that she was indeed gone. A scream erupted and Hodgins left Booth's side to comfort Angela, who was becoming hysterical. She fought his arms, crying 'no' over and over. Cam and Zack rushed out to meet the EMTs and Sweets just sat, shocked into silence.

Booth lost the fight to contain his emotions and hugged Brennan's lifeless body. "I'm sorry, Bones," he said, sobbing into her hair. "I'm so sorry."

--

Three days later Booth stood underneath a large oak tree, away from everyone else. He wasn't surprised at the large turnout; Bones had touched a lot of lives throughout her career. Hodgins and Angela walked up and stood beside him, taking in the crowd.

"Sure is a lot of people here," Hodgins said, holding his distraught fiancé in his arms. Booth just nodded, jaw tight in pain and anger, eyes hidden behind dark sunglasses. His crisp black suit looked brand new and his 'cocky' belt buckle was gone, replaced with a traditional brass one. Hodgins sighed and looked back towards the crowd, which was dispersing. The service was over.

Booth watched as people made their way over to Max, hugging him and whispering their condolences. Booth's heart, what was left of it anyway, seized. Over the past few days he had tried to reign in his emotions, especially in front of the squints, but today he couldn't stop the tears as they silently slid down his cheeks, dripping onto his suit. Angela noticed and put her arms around him in a quiet hug. He held tight to her as he struggled to squelch the sob that was building up inside him.

"I never got to tell her, Ange," Booth whispered.

"She knew, Booth," she replied. Angela pulled back and looked up at him, cheeks wet with tears. He pulled his sunglasses off and wiped his eyes with his handkerchief. "Thank you, Angela," he said softly.

Cam and Dr. Sweets, who'd been watching from afar, made their way up to the trio.

"We tried to get Zack to come, but he said he just couldn't. I think Dr. Brennan's death has been the hardest on him," Cam said sadly. Booth nodded. Sweets, eyes red-rimmed, made his way up to Booth and stuck out his hand.

"Thanks for all your help, Sweets. And I apologize for any torment I inflicted upon you," Booth said seriously, giving the psychologist's hand a firm shake. Sweets just nodded.

"Well, the crowd is gone," Angela said, looking to where Max stood alone over the mahogany casket. Without a word, they walked towards him. Max turned when he heard footsteps.

"I'm sorry for your loss," Sweets said, as he squeezed Max's outstretched hand.

"Thank you. I'm sure Tempe never told you, but she had the utmost respect for you, Dr. Sweets," Max said, smiling. Sweets took a step towards the casket, and laid his hand on the top, bowed his head, and quietly said 'good-bye'. Cam was next. Max enveloped her in a big hug as she mumbled her condolences through fresh tears. Angela choked up as she reached Max.

"Thank you for being such a dear friend to my Tempe," Max said. Angela nodded and wiped her eyes as she walked up to the casket.

"Sweetie, I'm going to miss you so much. You were my best friend, one of the few people who accepted me for me without judging. I…" Angela broke down and Hodgins came up behind her, putting his arms around her. "I love you Bren." Hodgins glanced back at Max, gave him a quick nod, and led Angela back to the car.

Max walked up to Booth. The FBI agent grabbed the older man in an embrace and they both cried. "You were the best thing that had ever happened to my daughter," Max said through tears. He pulled back and made Booth look at him. "She loved you, Agent Booth. And I know you love her." Booth nodded and walked to the casket. He stroked the smooth wood, the best money could buy. He plucked a daisy out of the arrangement on top of the casket and put it to his nose, closing his eyes.

Putting both hands on the casket, he sighed. "Dammit, Bones. How could you leave me like this? I never got to tell you…" Overcome, he sighed. Sucking in a shaky breath, he continued. "I love you, Bones. I guess I should say loved, since you aren't here anymore…" He whimpered as a tear slid down his cheek. "I don't know the moment it happened, I just woke up one day and realized that I couldn't live without you. But I never told you. I didn't want the FBI to break us up. I guess I thought you'd figure it out on your own, in your own time. Now, I regret…" He bowed his head and prayed for the strength to continue. "I regret never telling you. Goodbye, Temperance," he whispered and laid the daisy on top of the casket. "I love you."

--

Booth awoke with a start. Sweat beaded on his brow. He looked at the alarm clock that sat on the nightstand. 5:45 a.m. He ran his hand through his hair and sighed. "Bones" he whispered, and grabbed his cell phone, pushing the speed dial.

"Brennan," she said and Booth almost fell out of bed with relief. It had all been a dream.

"Booth? What are you doing up so early? It's Saturday," Brennan said, stifling a yawn. Booth could tell he'd woken her up.

"Sorry, Bones. I must've hit your number by mistake. But while I've got you on the line, can we have breakfast this morning? I've got something I need to tell you."

THE END


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